Corn-planter



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

W. H. FREEMAN.

CORN PLANTER.

No. 546,141. Patented Sept. 10,1895.

[6 WITNESSES (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Shet 2-.

' W. H. FREEMAN.

CORN PLANTER.

No. 546,141. Patented Sept. 10,1895.

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ANDREW RGRMIAM. P'IIOTO-UTHDVWASHINGTONDQ \VILLIAM H. FREEMAN,

Erica PATENT OF HEMLOGK, INDIANA.

CORN-PLANTER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 546,141, dated September 10, 1895.

Application filed June 6, 1895.

To 42% whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM H. FREEMAN, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Hemlock, in the county of Howard and State of Indiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Corn-Planters; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of thisspecification.

The object of my invention is to provide a corn-planter of improved construction which comprises 'a wheel-frame and ruuuer-fran1e, the runner-frame being pivotally connected to the wheel-frame and provided with seed boxes and seed-slides, the bar of the seed-slide being connected by a jointed arm to a horizontally-oscillating lever which is actuated from the axle of the wheel-frame, and the runnenframe carrying a stud or projection which is adapted to engage with the connecting-bar of the seed-slides, so as to prevent excessive rearward movement of said runner-frame.

The invention further consists in the special construction and combination of the parts, as will be hereinafter fully set forth, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, Figure 1 is a plan view of a corn-planter constructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is a sectional view on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a sectional view on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1, and Figs. t and 5 are detail views of the lever and its. mechanism for adjusting the markers carrie by the axle.

A designates the wheel-frame of the planter, which is provided with an axle B, having rigidly attached thereto a cam-disk b and a sleeve or enlarged portion 1), to which is rigidly fixed a ratchet-Wheel 19 The axle B passes through suitable bearings secured to the under side of the longitudinal beams of the wheel-frame, and beyond the bearings the axle is preferably squared to receive collars B, which are adapted to slide on said axle and rotate therewith. To the collars B are rigidly fixed markers 0, which project beyond Serial No. 551,898. (No model.)

thefrim of the supporting-Wheels D, the supporting-wheels being loosely mounted on the axle, andthe hub of each wheel is provided with a clutch-face d, which engages with a clutch-face b on the adjacent collar B, and when'the clutches are thrown in engagement, as hereinafter described, the axle turns with the supporting-wheels.

The collars B are forced against the hubs of the supporting-wheels by means of helical springs b, which encircle the axle and are interposed between said collars and the bearings for the axle. The collars are provided with peripheral grooves, with which the bifurcated ends of levers E engage, said levers being pivoted to brackets which extend from the longitudinal beams of the wheel-frame, and the ends of the levers are connected to an operatiug-bar E by rods e, the bar being centrally pivoted and operated by a handle or lever e located adjacent to the drivers seat. A spring-catch e is carried by the Wheel-frame and engages with the depending end of the bolt or pin which passes through the outer end of the bar E, so as to hold the levers E against the action of the helical Springs 1). The markers Gare slightly bowed from end to end and are made of flat spring metal, so that they will have the required degree of resiliency, and when the clutches are in engagement the markers are held by springpressure against the rims of the wheels.

F designates alever,thelower end of which is formed so as to engage with the ratchetdisk 5 and this lever is provided with an extensionf, which bears against one side of the ratchet-wheel. The lever is pivoted to a ring F, which encircles the sleeve b and is provided with a stud f, with which the projecting portionf of the lever engages when said lever is swungforward to rest in a supportf carried by one of. the longitudinal beams of the wheel-frame. ring F moves loosely on the sleeve 12, so that the lever can be moved to engage with the teeth of the ratchet-disk, the lever being for the purpose of turning the axle so as to adjust the markers in proper position with re spect to the seed-slide. Before operating the lever]? to turn the axle in adjusting the marl;- ers the levers E E are operated, as hereinbefore described, to disengage the clutches.

It will be noted that the 5 The longitudinal beams of the wheel-frame attached to the forward ends thereof and extend transversely to a point on a line with the wheels D, where they are bent downwardly and then forwardly, the ends being bifurcated and apertured for the passage of bolts or pins, which engage with vertical slots in blocks h, attached to the lower end of the runner-frame. This manner ofconnecting the wheel-frame to the runner-frame allows a vertical movementof the runner-frame, so that it can adapt itself to the inequalities of the ground. The

-1unner-fra1ne is also connected to the wheelframe above its pivotal point by means of a chain It or equivalent flexible connection.

The runner-frame is provided with the usual runners, seed-boxes, and spouts, the seedboxes having reciprocating slides I. The seed-slides are connected to each other by a bar K, which is pivoted to the seedslides so as to have a rocking movement, and one of the transverse bars which support the seed-boxes has an upwardly-projecting stud 7c, which engages the connecting-bar K when the runner-frame is tilted, and serves to limit the rearward movement of said runner-frame, the connecting-bar being held stationary by the arm L, hereinafter described. K, which actuatcs the seed-slides, is engaged by an arm L, the rear end of which is bifurcated and provided with a projecting portion Z, having a segmental face which engages with the forward end of an oscillating bar M, said bar being pivoted on the wheel-frame so that its rear end will be actuated by the cam 11, secured to the axle.

I am aware that prior to my invention it has been proposed to provide a corn-planter with a cam and horizontally-oscillating lever which is connected by a jointed arm to the seed-slide, so as toimpart a reciprocatingino- The bar of a planter with clutches and markers, and to provide means for adjusting the axle upon which the markers are mounted, and I do not therefore claim such features broadly; but

WVhat I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is V 1. In a corn-planter, the combination, of the supporting wheels D loosely mounted on the axle of the wheel-frame and provided with clutch faces, sliding collars 13' mounted on the axle to rotate therewith and having clutch faces which engage the clutch faces on the hubs of the supporting-wheels, markers 0 rigidly secured to the sliding collars, said markers being bowed so that their ends will be held in frictional contact with the rims of the wheels, and operating levers connected to the sliding collars, together with a ratchet-disk b rigidly mounted on the axle and provided with a hub on one side, and a lever F havinga portion F which encircles the hub, the lever F being pivoted to the portion F so that it will engage the teeth of the ratchet-disk, substantially as shown and for the purpose set forth.

2. In a corn-planter, the combination with the wheel-frame and runner-frame, of bars G G connecting the frames to each other said bars being rigidly secured to the wheel-frame and pivotally connected to the lower ends of the runner-frame, an arched bar K pivoted at its ends to the seed slides of the runner-frame, an arm or lever pivoted on the'wheel-frame and connected at its outer end to the arched bar, and a stud or projection on the runnerframe adjacent to the arched bar, substantially as shown and for the purpose set'forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

\VILLIAM II. FRE EMA'N.

Witnesses:

J OHN A. TRACY, GEORGE W. Ronnsson. 

